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Saturday, June 30, 2012

I love all the inspiration I receive from other scrapbookers - especially all the scrapbooking friends that I know personally!

A while ago my bff, Carolyn, made up the cutest basket and matching card that I just fell in love with! I have been wanting to make my own basket ever since I saw hers and as I am heading home soon to visit my Mom for a few days, I thought I would make one to take to her!

I made mine using red cardstock and I added a little ruffled ribbon as an accent. I made the tags using SRM Stickers that I have had for a while.

Another good scrapbooking friend, Christa, made up the cutest gift basket for her daughter's teacher and she also used a berry theme! She filled her basket with all sorts of strawberry scented soaps and lotions from Bath & Body Works, so I used her idea and added some similar products to mine. I also added some yummy red and green lollipops and some chocolate!

My Mom truly is the sweetest and I can't wait to give this to her :) Thanks to my friends for the wonderful inspiration!

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

It is my turn to post the challenge this week at Little Red Wagon and I thought it would be fun if everyone got Krafty! I LOVE Kraft cardstock - it is one of those fabulous products that can be used in so many different ways.

For my project I made a clean and simple card using Kraft paper and my Silhouette Cameo!

I found this fabulous bird on a branch design that I thought would make a great card. I also added a border that I created using a Fiskars border punch.

Then some gorgeous bakers twine and a button and there you have it! A sweet, simple card for someone special :)

Be sure to check out Little Red Wagon this week to see all the Krafty creations and while you are there be sure to link up your own Krafty project!

Friday, June 15, 2012

You may recall from our last challenge that the purpose of this group is to take our scrapbooking to the next level; to stretch our creative process and to grow as artists by embracing challenges that make us think, work and grow. This month's challenge was issued by the very talented Laura Whitaker. Here's a sampling of what Laura asked us to do:

"For my challenge I wanted to get back to the root of scrapbooking a little bit, back to the preserving of memories; to encourage you to look at your photos a little more closely. We all have cute photos of the sweet-faced children and beautiful family members in our lives, that we can scrapbook. But I want to challenge you to choose a photo that tells a story or evokes an emotion, something a little different than our children playing or family members posing. We all have heard that a picture speaks a thousand words. Chose a photo that was taken from behind the subject, preferably one in which you cannot see their face. Maybe you have chosen not to scrap a particular photo in past because you couldn’t see the subject’s face very well, this is the perfect time to use that photo. Then the story will be the focus and not the face. Then tell the story that goes with the photo via your journaling. This way when our families look back at this page years from now, they will truly be reminded of the moment."

What an awesome challenge! I had to search a bit for a photo taken from behind. As I looked through the hundreds of pictures on my computer, I couldn't seem to find one that I wanted to use. But then I saw this picture of my son that was taken a couple of years ago when we visited Myrtle Beach. It instantly brought back some great memories and made me reflect on how wonderful it was to walk along the ocean's edge late in the day, just enjoying the quiet and not even feeling the need to carry on a conversation.

I wanted to try to capture the feeling of solitude, as well as the beach theme, so I combined a number of different papers and elements on my page to do this.

The tan paper behind the photo, by We R Memory Keepers, was already 'pre-splattered' and it reminded me of sand, so I knew I wanted to use it on my page. I also used papers from Authentique and Kaiser Craft, along with white corrugated paper from Jillibean.

I added some extra splatters on the background using Mister Huey's Color Mists in Clay and Opaque White, and I did a small bit of machine stitching in a couple of spots. I also added three seagulls that I cut with my Silhouette and I love the feeling they add to the page!

I really like that Laura challenged us to add some journaling to our page! That is something that I know is important, but that I am often neglectful of. It was a great reminder to me that the story behind the pictures needs be told.

Here's the list of my IE friends, who have been working all month to create gorgeous and inspiring designs. I hope you'll pop by and see what they have created and perhaps take a moment to say a word or two :)

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

The June challenge on theMy Minds Eye Blog is 'fussy cutting' and I decided to play along :)

Fussy cutting is not something that I normally do, so this was a great challenge to take me out of my comfort zone. I used papers from their fabulous new line, Indie Chic, and I actually enjoyed hand cutting around all the interesting shapes!

I used a sweet photo of my girlfriend's lovable little boy and it worked so well with this collection. I also used some Mister Huey's Color Mists to give a bit of detail to the background, added some twine from MME Follow Your Heart and alphas from American Crafts.

Thursday, June 7, 2012

Welcome to the Two Scrapbook Friends Father's Day Blog Hop! You should have started the hop at the Two Scrapbook Friends Blog and arrived here fromJudy's blog. I am sure you have seen some amazing projects along the way and I hope you are inspired to do some creating of your own!

If you got lost along the way, here is the list of blogs you should have visited on this inspiring journey:

For my project, I decided to create a layout using the Happy Travels line from Glitz Design. I love the color combination and feel of these papers and I thought with the map and airplane patterns, the title "You Mean The World To Us", would work really well. This is the perfect sentiment to use with a photo of my hubby, who truly is a great husband and father!

I had fun creating an interesting title using Alphabet Stickers from Prima. All of the different fonts come in one package (along with some words) so it is really easy to mix and match them for your titles and journaling.

I also created a canvas banner using banner pieces from Prima. I splattered some watercolor paints on them, inked them up a bit with Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Vintage Photo) and threaded some bakers twine through them.

Last, but not least, I created an embellishment cluster using an old ticket from my stash, a corrugated heart from Jillibean, a heart punched from one of the Happy Travels paper, word stickers from Prima and some wooden airplane shapes from Studio Calico. I simply attached the small airplanes to quilting pins and created my own decorative pins to add to my page :)

I then added some machine and hand stitching to my page for extra detail.

Now be sure to finish the Blog Hop by making a final stop at the Two Scrapbook Friends Blog. Leave a comment on the Blog Hop Post and be sure to send in the completed phrase for a second chance to win the prize!

Don't forget to:1. Leave a comment on all the blogs as you go and then go back to the Two Scrapbook Friends blog and leave a final comment there. If you do, you will qualify to be in a draw for a special prize!2. To have a second chance to win, keep track of the RED HIGHLIGHTED WORDS from each blog and email the phrase to 2friends@execulink.com. Put "Blog Contest" in your subject line.3. Check back at the Two Scrapbook Friends blog on June 12th to see if you are the winner. (Winners will not be contacted personally.)

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

It's Wednesday! And it is time for another great challenge at Little Red Wagon :)

This week's challenge is definitely... a challenge! Rosanne wants us to use a playing card on our project. Hmmm... I did not have any ideas for this challenge until my BFF suggested I try to see if Silhouette had anything I could use. Sure enough - there were these great shapes for playing card suits!

I cut them out using my Silhouette (only the second time I have used it!) and I created my own playing cards.

I used papers from Authentique and did a bit of stitching, and I have to say, despite the challenge, I am really happy with how it turned out.

So, show us what you can do with a playing card theme! Pop over toLittle Red Wagonand play along - we would love to see what you create :)

Life is good and each new day holds many blessings if we but know how to recognize them! My blog is a place where I can share some of the blessings in my life including my love of family, paper crafting, travel, cooking and reading. Thanks for stopping by!